Even people with a passing knowledge of Asher Roth’s career in the past two years know that the Pennsylvanian has switched up his rapping style. It’s more obtuse, over-pronounced and infinitely weirder, sort of like a kooky Warner Bros. cartoon.

Which is probably why Ash’s latest video for “Apples & Bananas,” fresh off June’s Greenhouse Effect Vol. 2, is animated. The track just plays better set against the Ryan Maloney-directed backdrop of Ash and friends’ trying to woo a bikini-clad Amazon. Apples and bananas do make an appearance in the video, but it’s disheartening to see that Ash’s girl next door serves apple slices with the seeds. Because really: who the hell does that?

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This is one of those songs where there’s technically nothing wrong with it, but I still can’t get into it. Something about the guy’s flow/cadence reminds me of Dumbfoundead, but its not quite as inspired as a DFD track. Video’s legit though.

I, like everyone else, burnt out on Roth when he first came up, hated his gimmicky pandering style that seemed to discount whatever actual skill he had. But then he put out a few hot tapes (Seared Foie Gras and especially the excellent Pabst & Jazz) and got my attention.

Greenhouse Effect 2 though….enhhhh. The first two tracks and last two or three are a REAL struggle. And this song highlights why- Ash can still rap his ass off, the verses here are great. But the hook is GODAWFUL. It’s hard not to take tracks like “Party Girl” and the Biebs/Chris Brown (…) feature as second-chance attempts at breaking the mainstream.

Listen to that Pabst & Jazz though. I always wondered why Blended Babies didn’t get any more production work- Roth should be looking to them and staying in the lane he knows best, not trying to make music for Spotify hits over toilet-water Oren Yoel production.